Douluo Continent: The Eye of Truth

Chapter 158 Star Changes

The Starry Sky Forest, the temporary base of the Holy Spirit Cult.

It was already late at night.

However, unlike before, the humans who remain here today have now been divided into two distinct factions.

In addition to the original group of Holy Spirit Cult evil soul masters, a large number of soul masters belonging to the Sun Moon Empire also settled here.

Instead, the original hundred or so evil spirit masters have been replaced by only fifty or so.

Inside a simple tent, two evil spirit masters were chatting casually.

A sinister-looking evil spirit master said viciously, "What a damn bad luck. I thought I could make a lot of money in this Star Dou Great Forest, but I ended up doing hard labor."

Another somewhat gaunt evil spirit master put down the human spirit master skull in his hand, which had been dried up for who knows how many years, and replied with a hint of helplessness.

"Let's say less. You know, the Grand Elder hasn't left yet. He hasn't said anything, so what can we do?"

"Just focus on your own work first. Do you want to end up like those people before, skinned alive and having your soul pulled out?"

Upon hearing the words "skinning and extracting souls," the sinister evil soul master's pupils constricted sharply, and he said somewhat resentfully, "Why the hell should our Holy Spirit Cult obey the orders of a bunch of soul beasts?"

"It's just a few kills." Just as this sinister evil spirit master was still complaining somewhat unhappily.

Another gaunt evil spirit master immediately interrupted him: "Has your brain dried up from not drinking blood for a year?"

The gaunt evil spirit master said through gritted teeth, "If you want to die, don't drag me down with you. We're right outside the core area of ​​the Star Dou Great Forest."

"Besides, you know how much that imperial auspicious beast cares about our Holy Spirit Cult. Who knows, some ferocious beast might have overheard your words."

Seeing the black resentment emanating from the gaunt evil spirit master, the sinister evil spirit master spat softly and stopped talking.

During this year, after Di Tian handed over control of the Holy Spirit Cult to the Emperor Beast.

These evil spirit masters also enjoyed a period of revelry.

After all, that's how they perceive it.

Since Di Tian, ​​the strongest beast god in the Star Dou Great Forest, no longer directly controls their Holy Spirit Cult.

Doesn't that mean they can act more freely in the Star Dou Great Forest?

It should be noted that many evil spirit masters feel extremely uncomfortable if they don't manipulate living souls, blood sacrifices, and resentment.

Having been in the Star Dou Great Forest for so long, they haven't really had any meat yet.

Although occasionally, in private, he would kidnap some neglected soul beast from the Star Dou Great Forest to indulge himself.

But they didn't dare to make too much of a fuss, though they were still itching to do it.

Now that Di Tian is gone and has been replaced by an imperial auspicious beast that doesn't seem to have high cultivation, won't their good days begin?

What they didn't know was that Di Tian really didn't care much about the lives of those low-level soul beasts.

Di Tian was aware of the little tricks they had played behind the scenes, but he simply couldn't be bothered to care.

After all, as long as the Holy Spirit Cult doesn't openly carry out large-scale massacres.

In the Star Dou Great Forest, the daily deaths of a dozen or so low-level soul beasts are nothing to worry about.

In Di Tian's eyes, apart from those belonging to the Dragon Clan, only those top-tier or super soul beasts were worthy of his attention.

However, Direll is different.

After being guided by Huo Yuhao's attributes, he was influenced by Huo Yuhao's mindset.

In her heart now, all soul beasts, regardless of their strength or potential, are equal.

They are all her subjects, the subjects of this imperial auspicious beast.

It is perfectly reasonable for spirit beasts to follow their habits and instincts, hunting and reproducing with each other.

However, people like those in the Holy Spirit Cult use torture and harm to soul beasts to enhance their own strength or derive pleasure from it.

This is undoubtedly a blatant provocation against her, the imperial mythical beast.

When emperors and auspicious beasts travel, they are always accompanied by ferocious beasts.

The original Di Rui'er did not care about this when she was still the Emperor Beast.

However, she has now learned from Huo Yuhao how to utilize her identity and the power she can mobilize.

Among the many ferocious beasts in the Star Dou Great Forest, the first one she sought out was the Demon King.

Deep in the dark forest, the dense, opaque branches and leaves intertwine to form patches of gloomy sky.

Thick moss spread across the dry tree trunks, and decaying bones and corpses could be faintly seen beneath the dead trees.

Decay and life intertwine, and deep within the branches and leaves of these withered trees lies a somewhat inconspicuous old tree.

From the outside, the old tree is not very tall, the trunk is slightly twisted, and the bark is covered with sores and marks.

Few people know that this is the true form of the Demon King, after he was forcibly moved from the outer perimeter of the Star Dou Great Forest to the core area of ​​the Star Dou Great Forest by Di Tian.

This demonic tree, which once absorbed and plundered the lives of countless beings, has now quietly gone into hibernation.

"Uncle King of Ten Thousand Demons." A clear and melodious voice rang out in the environment that seemed completely out of place with her presence.

Direel's arrival brought a touch of warmth to the dark, damp, and sunless depths of the forest.

As she called out, the withered vines around her intertwined.

Immediately afterwards, a middle-aged man with a bluish complexion and eerie green eyes appeared in front of Di Ruier.

The surrounding branches and vines seemed to be subtly connected to him, as if they were providing him with nourishment and vitality.

Upon seeing Di Ruier's arrival, the Demon King forced a smile onto his face.

"Why does this auspicious beast have time to come see me?"

As a being capable of ruling over all plants in the entire Star Dou Great Forest, the Demon King was undoubtedly deeply feared by Emperor Tian.

Although the ferocious-level plant-type soul beasts were already able to transform into human form and leave, Di Tian had already set up control over the true form of the Demon King.

They couldn't move an inch without his permission; he had practically completely restricted them.

After all, the Demon King's ability to endure and scheme is freakish among all soul beasts.

Not to mention that among the already simple plant-type soul beasts, the existence of the Demon King is even more unique and peculiar.

However, like all ferocious beasts, when facing the Emperor Beast, the King of Ten Thousand Demons still showed his gentle side as much as possible.

After all, the existence of the Imperial Beasts directly affects the speed of their cultivation progress and whether they can increase their chances of successfully passing the Heavenly Tribulation.

Even someone as ruthless and reckless as Xiong Jun would suppress his temper upon seeing this little ancestor, let alone the cunning and scheming Wan Yao Wang.

"Uncle King of Ten Thousand Demons, I've come here hoping you can help me."

"Oh?" Narrowing his eyes slightly, the Demon King asked tentatively, "Auspicious Beast, please speak freely."

At this moment, the Demon King was somewhat unsure of Di Ruier's intentions.

After all, except for some very special occasions, Di Tian would almost never allow anyone to come into contact with him.

Now, according to the auspicious beast's meaning, could it be that he, the King of Ten Thousand Demons, still has a chance to turn the tables under Emperor Tian's nose?

Di Ruier explained her thoughts in detail: "Ever since those human soul masters who were permitted by Di Tian came to our Star Dou Great Forest..."

"Those low-level soul beast clans have been thrown into chaos and have no peace. Now, Di Tian has handed over the authority to govern them to me."

At this point, Di Ruier became more serious, and an aura of authority emanated from her.

Despite being a relatively ordinary demonic tree, the suppression at the bloodline level caused the Demon King to bow slightly to Di Ruier.

However, he was more delighted than anything else, because every word Di Ruier said next resonated with him.

"In order to stop their rampage, I hope that you, Uncle King of Ten Thousand Demons, will cooperate with me to monitor those human soul masters."

"Stop them immediately and report to me if they do anything to harm other soul beast groups."

"As for how to punish them, I will make my own arrangements."

At this point, Di Ruier's golden eyes flickered, and the fleeting pressure within them made the Demon King lower his head even further.

"Di Tian has always believed that your existence, Uncle Wan Yao Wang, poses a threat to the Star Dou Great Forest."

"But that was tens of thousands of years ago. After I was born, even if you, Uncle Demon King, didn't harm other soul beasts, your cultivation would still steadily improve."

"Furthermore, reducing the hunting of other soul beasts will also help you accumulate your own luck."

"I believe Uncle Demon King won't hunt indiscriminately like before. What do you say, Uncle Demon King?"

Hearing Di Ruier's words, the originally excited King of Ten Thousand Demons calmed down a bit.

Because Di Ruier is right. Hunting soul beasts, devouring life, and painstakingly developing, what is the purpose of the Ten Thousand Demon King?

Isn't the goal to grow stronger, have a longer lifespan, and continue to survive?

However, now that auspicious beasts have been introduced, it is better to continue the previous approach.

It's far safer to follow auspicious beasts than to risk being hostile to most soul beasts.

Thus, the Demon King no longer yielded to bloodline and status, but sincerely bowed his head to Di Ruier before him.

"Please rest assured and leave it to me. Under my watchful eye, the actions of those human soul masters will be exposed."

Seeing the posture of the Demon King, Di Ruier nodded: "Uncle Demon King, don't worry, the situation on the Douluo Continent is changing rapidly."

"The threat posed by humans is growing stronger, and we soul beasts must unite our strength closely. This is my idea, and it is also Di Tian's intention."

Looking at the radiant Di Ruier, the Demon King couldn't help but think to himself, "Emperor Beast, Soul Beast Emperor, it seems she's no longer the little one she used to be."

"But besides it being your and Di Tian's intention, is the one inside the forbidden area also involved?"

Under the watchful eyes of the Demon King, all those evil spirit masters who were causing trouble were exposed.

In general, not one of the more than one hundred evil spirit masters had not done anything bad in the Star Dou Great Forest.

However, due to the cooperation with the Sun and Moon Empire, the Emperor Beast did not kill them all after they were all brought to justice.

He simply took Xiong Jun and killed the thirty-odd most wicked evil spirit masters as a warning to others.

Faced with the pressure from Xiong Jun and the dragon's might that was faintly pressing down on him.

The elder of the Holy Spirit Church bent over even more.

He is the oldest member of the Holy Spirit Cult besides Ye Xishui.

This elder was not the most powerful, but he was the most resilient, and his strengths lay in his ability to assess situations and his keen insight.

Not only did he agree to all of Di Rui'er's demands, but he also strengthened his control over the evil spirit masters under his command.

He even personally dragged out more than a dozen evil spirit masters, skinned them, extracted their souls, and turned them into human puppets on the spot to show his sincerity.

"Please rest assured, Lord Auspicious Beast, such a thing will never happen again in the Star Dou Great Forest."

"We will not delay our cooperation with the Star Dou Great Forest. Within three days, the Sun Moon Empire will send reinforcements."

"And these are a small apology from my Holy Spirit Church, please accept them."

Although it was quite painful, the Holy Spirit Cult's Grand Elder even handed over a level nine defensive soul tool he had brought as an apology.

Seeing that the other party was so humble, Di Ruier naturally couldn't continue to make trouble.

Subsequently, under the control of this elder, the Holy Spirit Cult did indeed restrain itself considerably.

Often, before Di Ruier could even cause trouble, those who didn't follow the rules had already been dealt with internally.

Unlike the unruly followers of the Holy Spirit Cult, the Soul Masters sent by the Sun Moon Empire were much more obedient.

However, in the eyes of Diruier and the group of ferocious beasts, the threat posed by these Soul Masters was more serious than that posed by the followers of the Holy Spirit Cult.

Star Dou Great Forest Core Area

Looking at the image projected by the spiritual power of the Demon King.

Di Ruier. Di Tian, ​​Bi Ji, and Zi Ji all had somewhat solemn expressions.

Both Xiong Jun and Chi Wang were somewhat confused, but they still adopted a thoughtful posture.

"Impressive tactics indeed." Di Tian sneered and praised, "I never expected that humans, whom I previously disregarded, could actually accomplish such remarkable feats."

"Beast God, this seems familiar," Zi Ji asked hesitantly.

The Soul Masters of the Sun Moon Empire were wearing full-body armor.

They cut through mountains and mined minerals deep beneath the Starry Sky Forest.

These minerals are located in places that even spirit beasts skilled in digging are reluctant to venture into.

The familiarity that Zi Ji mentioned refers to the crystals embedded in the heart of the Soul Guidance Armor.

"Dragon Crystal, it's only slightly similar," Di Tian said coldly.

Upon hearing this, the other ferocious beasts finally understood what Di Tian was angry and worried about.

Dragon crystals are unique energy crystals of the dragon race. They are dragon cores that have not been integrated with the life force of the entire body, and they are also the soul core of the dragon race.

It is only because its composition is somewhat different from that of ordinary soul cores that it is unique to the dragon race and is therefore called dragon crystal.

This is also why dragons are generally stronger than other soul beasts; dragon crystals have a much higher energy utilization rate than ordinary soul cores.

"Have humans already been able to replicate dragon crystals? Or...?" Brigitte asked with some concern.

Di Tian shook his head and didn't say anything more, only saying, "King of Ten Thousand Demons, keep an eye on these humans. If they make any other moves, come find me and the auspicious beast immediately."

(End of this chapter)